"˜Cause it surely didn't fall short of mine! The movie was fast paced, packed with clever lines and it did set a host of future movies. It basically had all the fixings of a smash hit.
Granted, Loki was missed. But his absence didn't really impact the overall feel. Age of Ultron turned up well despite director's choice to cut out Loki.
Now, this is my list of the most surprising moments in the second installment of The Avengers. You may either agree or disagree. But I for one didn't see any of that coming. Well, except number 5, which is the one I'll start with below.
5. Quicksilver's death in Age of Ultron
This one is more of a satisfaction than a surprise. OK, not a satisfaction because Quicksilver died, but because our theory stuck.
Remember when we shortlisted the names of the possible victims? Then we narrowed it down to Quicksilver.
Yeah, we were right. Quicksilver did die. We all saw it on screen. But if you've kept posted with Joss Whedon's interviews following Age of Ultron, you must know he did consider keeping him alive.
Whedon envisioned an alternate ending with Quicksilver alive. They even did some shooting, the "enhanced" ending up, just like his sister, part of the New Avengers Assemble.
But, after all, who stays dead in the MCU? It's highly likely they'll find a way to bring Quicksilver back. "˜Cause they surely have plenty of reasons to make Quicksilver return from the dead.
4. Hawkeye's collateral story
Remember when Robert Downey Jr. announced Hawkeye would be much more central to Age of Ultron?
I surely hoped he'll play more than the commonplace sidekick. Hawkeye is unique in so many ways in the MCU, and he certainly deserves more prominence on screen.
But to make a whole collateral story about Hawkeye - well, that's a shocker! All the more he's portrayed as a family guy, husband and father who, on occasion, gets a call and goes to work to save the world.
Did they need to do that? To concoct such a story and paint Clint Barton in such different colors? Don't know if they had to, but they surely pulled it off.
It must have come quite easy, in fact: they never really went into detail with Hawkeye. As Renner put it in an interview following Age of Ultron, it "felt like Hawkeye was almost introduced as a new character, because he's never really been explored prior with any sort of depth at all".
Hawkeye's collateral story doesn't only give depth to a character we all love - I for one know I do - but also comes at the right moment.
When they're all in need of an escape, the Avengers are led by Hawkeye to a safe place - his very home, where the Barton family lives.
3. Black Widow - Hulk romance
Age of Ultron is a game changer in so many ways. The incipient romance between Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff is not something I expected.
Sure the Black Widow has a specific set of skills - getting under people's skin is one ability we've seen her exerting so many times in Iron Man, The Avengers and Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
The fact agent Romanoff grows on Banner - I could have understood that up to a point. But the way their relation is developed exceeded my expectations.
It's not that just Dr. Banner contemplates - and declines - the prospect of an affair with Natasha, but the Black Widow herself seems quite engaged in this possibility. She's, in fact the one who makes the first move.
And there's more. She also appears to take on the role of the Hulk whisperer. So some point, she controls the raging beast, helping him to shift to his human form.
In my opinion, Hulk's decision to part company with the Avengers is caused by his feelings for the Black Widow. His final gesture must be read as a way to protect Natasha from his bursts. Is that not a way to say "I love you back", huh?
Anyway, just another apparently loose end they'll most certainly build on later!
2. Loki's Scepter revealed as the Mind Gem
This one must have pained some fans. Until Age of Ultron, Loki's Scepter - also known as the Chitauri Scepter - was not confirmed as an Infinity Stone.
The key argument was Thanos would never part with an Infinity Gem - his goal is to gather all 6 of them and assemble the Infinity Gauntlet in order to rule the world - this one and any other known and unknown world.
Until Age of Ultron, the alien artifact would just be a powerful tool used to manipulate people's minds.
But Age of Ultron changed all that. It is in a vision of Thor that the stone inside the Scepter is revealed as the Mind Gem. In fact, the Asgardian is the first who calls it by its name.
What's even more interesting is this gem is extracted from the Scepter and placed on The Vision's forehead to bring him to life.
Which is, of course, a deviation from the letter of the comic books: there, the stone on The Vision's forehead is a Solar Jewel, a sort of battery that makes the critter work. But not in the movie.
Age of Ultron sort of tampers with the origins of The Vision, which is fine in the long run, "˜cause it makes future developments unpredictable.
But speaking about The Vision"¦
1. The Vision picks up Thor's hammer
And that actually blew my mind! In the comics, there are a handful of established Marvel characters who can wield Mjolnir, Captain America, Loki and Black Widow included. But, as seen in The Avengers and in Age of Ultron, none of them can actually lift Thor's hammer.
Granted, the Black Widow declines the challenge - who knows, perhaps that's one way of setting yet another development in future Marvel movies: they might pick up on this detail and explore it later. Yeah, I'd like to see that!
But back to Age of Ultron! The Vision can wield Mjolnir: if now he’s worthy of ruling Asgard, well, one can argue both in favor and against this notion. Anyway, the point is I consider this to be quite a kick in the head.
On top of the fact The Vision is an outstanding character, his ability to wield Mjolnir is - I guess - consequential, impacting the future developments in the MCU.
What do you say guys? Is my list complete? Would you add something else to this roster? Have your say below, and stay tuned, we'll bring you the hottest scoop on all things Marvel!
